Age of Wushu – Not Just Your Ordinary MMO
It seems like we’ve had a lot of talk lately about MMOs, and since we’re on that subject there’s one specific game I want to delve into a little bit. That game would be Age of Wushu, the new MMO in development by Snail Games. Age of Wushu originally launched in China, where it was largely successful, and is making an official move to the states. With that comes a ton of features, quests, and a mystical land that’s brand new to the genre.
Age of Wushu doesn’t play out like your run-of-the-mill MMO. It’s completely ditched the class and leveling system for a simpler, yet more innovative, skill and profession system. Players won’t be taking their character through different levels, but rather they will progress in their skills, professions, and the martial arts style of their choice.
If you haven’t figured it out already, Age of Wushu gets its flair from Chinese martial arts movies and culture. The game follows China during the time of the Ming Dynasty, which is a very popular time in Chinese history. This is a time of prosperity, strength, and spiritual growth.
As for what players can do, there’s much. Players will start off by choosing from one of eight different schools of martial arts. Then you’ll make a choice from one of six different storylines. After that, you’ll become the protagonist of your own individual story. After moving out of the starting area your path is really up to you. Players can go about the world leveling up professions such as fishing, cooking, and more, or put focus into training their martial arts skills.
One really amazing feature of Age of Wushu isn’t even during the gameplay – it’s when you log off the game. Whenever you decide to log out of the game your character doesn’t leave the game world. They become an NPC, traveling about leveling professions. Your character could become a shopkeep in town, work as a guard, or just go out and fish until daylight disappears. When you log back into the game, you’ll be greeted with what your character has accomplished since you left. During your break from the game your character can rank up skills, and even gain money from working jobs.
When it comes to combat, Age of Wushu also takes things a bit differently. Tabbing to target has gone out the window. Players will experience action combat, much like what we’ve seen with Vindictus and Tera. Aerial combat has been introduced to the game as well, making for a whole new horizon to discover. Most of the combat moves can be used while jumping and gliding, so those players who want to jump all the time won’t be doing anything too special.
Overall, Age of Wushu implicates a rock-paper-scissors system when it comes to combat. Attack skills are red-rimmed, green-rimmed skills block or buff your character, and skills that break opponent’s defenses are blue-rimmed. Using the correct skills in the correct order will determine the outcome of any battle. Here’s something interesting, though. Since there isn’t a leveling system, players won’t be able to tell outright how powerful another player is. This means that the simple beggar on the street could turn out to be a Wushu master!
The good thing about the skill system in Age of Wushu is that it’s simple. The more you do certain things and use certain skills, the better you get at them. Skills won’t deteriorate, and it’s possible to learn every skill in the game due to the ability to cross-train into other schools. This means you can easily find a skillset that will adapt to your play style, making the game much more open-ended and available to players.
Since Age of Wushu introduces a large, rich world in which to explore, there has to be a way to move around, right? Well the devs have you covered in more ways than one. Just like with traditional martial arts movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and The Hero, your characters can traverse water and wind to get where they’re going. You’ll be able to tiptoe across lakes and use the wind to glide to higher places, though you’ll also be able to run up walls and across rooftops. Nothing is off-limits in this game.
A unique dynamic has been added to the game when it comes to PVP and griefing. If you’re killed by another player you can post wanted posters about them through towns, add them to your enemies list, and even offer a bounty for capturing or killing them. That’s right, you can kidnap and capture other players in the game world. Of course these acts won’t go without punishment, but they can still be done. For those who want to cause the grief, punishments will be abundant. You can get thrown in jail, and town guards will be alert to your presence in towns. If this happens you’ll need to hide out until your villain rank goes down.
If you find yourself wanting to be a constant bother you can be recruited by boss mobs to fight fellow players. This is no joke. You can actually become a boss’ minion and fight other players in the world. Doing this will cause you to be unwelcome in towns and public places, but there are spots in the underworld that will grant you access.
Age of Wushu has tons to offer players, and it will definitely add a brand new outlet to the current selection of MMOs. The game literally lets you create your own destiny and offers up a real-world experience in MMO form. The game doesn’t have a specified release date, and right now it’s in its closed beta. Players can pay a fee to gain beta access, and it’s currently $9.99 for access. You can sign up and pre-purchase this Wushu Elite Edition on the game’s official website. It’s definitely worth purchasing, and it’ll be even more worth it once the game releases. Age of Wushu is one MMO that’s worth its weight in gold, and you’ll need to check it out.
